August 18, 2008

You know, saying sorry for neglecting my blog, and all the lovely people who left comments and asked questions, doesn’t really make up for the fact that I…well, neglected my blog and all the lovely people who left comments and asked questions🙂

If it’s any consolation, I have been travelling in South America all summer and literally got back this week. Amazing time…more on that later! I FINALLY have some pics to upload. They’re not recent (well, they’re from May- 6 months post-op) but they’re pretty much the same now…except they’re more tanned!

Sorry in advance for the bad quality/dodgy angles…I took them myself, in my bedroom, so they’re not great! I wore a padded plunge bra from H&M in some (love that fucking bra!) and a non-padded black bra from Marks and Spencer in the others. Size: 34C.

Anyway hope you’re all well and I’m gonna get to the questions. Please keep leaving comments. If this blog helps even five people feel better about themselves then it’s worth it. Post your experiences, pics, feelings, any negativity you’ve experienced…’cos here we’re among friends!!

P.S Anyone who wants a 34C and wants to know what implants I have- 260cc silicone, under the muscle, crease incision. My scars are not completely gone, not 100% happy about that…my ADVICE for today is: BUY scar therapy/cream/oil and use it twice a day! I didn’t. That shit has been proven to work. Actually tomorrow I’ll blog about a new one I was told about, that’s expensive but supposed to be AMAZING.

April 23, 2008

HOWDY folks…I’m back, loaded with pics.

OK the pics aren’t uploaded yet but I do have them. I’m guessing many people got sick of waiting and cursed me to the depths of hell and I don’t blame you. Believe me I have my reasons for the delay. Let me say they WILL be posted! I’ve just so much going on. I’m thinking of doing a study on how breast implants affect your whole life in a positive way…because I have never been this confident.

Anyway, I got a new comment on my ‘Get over it‘ post and I liked so much I decided to post it separately.

So here you go, courtesy of Beth:

“I know this is an old post, but I’ve got something to say, so I’m saying it…My sister recently got breast enhancement surgery, and she’s still swollen and so afraid that she’s going to look like Pamela Anderson for the rest of her life.

I was looking for a website or blog that she could read to help her through the emotions of the first few weeks. I think, Alex, that I may have found it, and I commend you for daring to be the voice of these girls, and take the criticism that people just seem to need to load upon others in their quest for perfection.

For unamed “What’s wrong with Natural”… well, nothing is wrong with natural, everyone knows that. But the question for you is, what’s wrong with not natural? Would you condemn a person who lost a limb to life without prosthetics? I know you’re now thinking that a limb is necessary, and breasts, not so.

Well, I challenge you on that. There have been an increasing number of news stories about people with extreme forms of handicap who get by just fine (like that famous woman with no arms who had a baby and takes care of her herself, crazy to watch somone cook dinner and change diapers with their feet)… and breasts are in fact part of the body, they aren’t an outdated relic of the past, they are a part of the woman’s body that makes her uniquely female.

Anthropologically, they are how the male of our species knows that the female is fertile, and as such, have become a big part of sexual desire, not just in the developed world where Hugh Heffner is a household name, but in our entire species, regardless of it’s exposure to airbrushed models. Having your boobs augmented may be a luxury, but it isn’t because having them makes you ’sexy’, it’s becuase not having them makes a woman feel like less of a woman…

Another example… have you ever known a woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer? I don’t know if you know this, but in the event of a breast cancer diagnosis, American insurance must pay for any of 3 options… 1) mastectomy of affected breast, 2) full mastectomy (both sides for good measure), or 3) full mastectomy AND breast augmentation… yes, that’s right, it’s considered a part of a woman’s body.

And if you’ve ever known a woman with breast cancer (I’ve had the displeasure of knowing two)… as with any diagnosis that could lead to death, the person is overwhelmed by the thought of dying, but the hope in them that they will live leads one to mourn the loss of the normality that we all live within. For a heterosexual woman, normality is tied into our femininity, and that link is not easily broken, the thought of living on, but without part of that femininity is very depressing for many woman.
Third… what is it with people wanting to tell others how to think and feel? I don’t get it. It’s always been an enigma to me within political and religious context, but this is even worse. How is it anyone’s business, what makes people think they should judge me for my actions which harm none. I wonder if when braces were becoming more popular, people were very judgemental of the desire to have straight teeth? Or if when ED became a diagnosed disorder, if people were judgemental of men who wanted to have sex again?

Sure, I get that everything that we do changes the societal norms, but like Alex said… there are so many more important things to be worrying about… like rape and murder, sex slavery in much of the world, child pornography, people so hungry in haiti that they are rioting for grain, women in africa being infected through rape with HIV, even the unethical practices of big insurance companies in America… there is so much in the world to be preoccupied, why focus on the rightousness of plastic surgery? Especially in such a negative way, even if I was inclined against plastic surgery, such venemous arguments make me disrespect the position.
And that is all.”

See, for every idiot who judges us for choosing to have breast surgery, there are ten people like Beth (and me, and you) who see sense. Go us!

March 27, 2008

I PROMISE I’m putting pics up very soon, Monday at the latest. I’ve been away for two weeks, but I finally have my new camera so I’ll take some good ones and post them asap. Now is actually a good time to do it because mine have softened and dropped a lot….I’m in love with them :)See you all soon!

February 25, 2008

Hey guys!

Just a quick post to say, I’ve been wearing bras to bed on and off ever since I’ve been allowed wear underwire and ‘normal’ bras (a.k.a not the pointy cone sports bras) and it’s not something I would recommend, at least this soon post-op (three months for me). I’m not wearing them on purpose– you know sometimes you just fall into bed in a t-shirt and forget to take your bra off. I always wore bras to bed pre-op, don’t know why, habit I guess. But lately I have to remind myself to take it off at night because, unless it’s a soft bra, I get little twinges underneath my boobs, where the underwire is pressing in. It’s probably not a good idea to wear underwire too much even months after the op– it does push against the healing implant.So, from now on, it’s soft bras or nothing for me at night.Fascinating, I know…but just wanted to spare some of you the slight pain!

February 21, 2008

Hello everyone! Once again I have been bad with my updates, but hey, I’ve been having too much fun with my new boobs to worry about it! (Ew, that sounds pretty disgusting….I don’t mean I was having fun on my own…although, I DO like to look down and go oooohhh I have breasts! Still a surprise sometimes!) Anyway, so I’m approaching three months post-op and my, how time flies when you’re recovering from breast surgery…when I think of the week before my op it’s all hazy and weird. I was pretty freaked out at times. Then afterwards I was tired, and a bit sore, and taking painkillers, and worrying about how they would look, so I didn’t really stop to think of the future and how they would look in a few months and years. It’s only now I realise how happy I really am with them. Sure, I mentioned that occasionally I get slightly annoyed with the continuing perception some people have of this procedure but mostly I’m just delighted I did it. I’m going to post pictures VERY SOON but I can tell you they are almost completely in my natural, pre- op shape (not really high and ‘stuck-on’ looking) and they continue to soften. The outsides of each one are much softer, and underneath, where the scars are, is the hardest place. But even that is much softer. Scars are still pretty visible but I think the Bio- Oil has reduced the redness. I don’t know if they look really fake or not…they definitely look less fake than they did week 1, when they looked like Posh- style baloons….but I think they still have an element of fakeness….which will continue to fade. So, anyone reading this who is currently in week 1 and feeling pretty miserable (believe me, I remember), take heart– it passes, and soon you’ll look and feel great. Happy boobies! xx

February 21, 2008

I’ve written about this before on here– about how other people perceive breast implants on women– and it’s something I still occasionally wonder about.

Because I am happy with my surgery, I honestly am not bothered if someone has a problem with it, or thinks I’m a slut, whatever (I have gotten these emails, seriously.)

What I do think about is where these perceptions have come from and why they are still around. I have only gotten good ‘reviews’ of my boobs but I still wonder, what do they say about me to other people? Why is there an image in the media of boob jobs = cheap, trashy, pathetic, slutty, blah blah idiots.

All the (two) guys who’ve actually seen and felt mine thought they were great, and my friends and family think they’re great. I do get the occasional “they’re pretty hard” comments but hey, I’m only three months post-op.

The second guy I told/showed them to/had sex with since my surgery said to me: “Fair play to you– it’s a big deal, isn’t it, deciding to do this…” and stuff like that. I was like, WHY is it a big deal? It really isn’t. You want to change your body, you have money, you do it. Finished. But for some reason, some people I know think getting a boob job means I’m a different person than they thought I was.

I also think it’s about breast size in general. Women are perceived differently depending on their boob size, whether we like it or not. I didn’t get this done so other people would look at me differently. In fact, the only negative thing to come out of this (and honestly it’s a tiny thing and not a regret) is that I do think some people ARE looking at me differently. Am I paranoid for some reason? Anyone reading this with implants who has had a negative reaction, let me know.

I found this study online when I was searching for articles on this topic…it’s about how a woman’s breast size affects people’s perceptions of her. I’ll just quote the whole abstract here.

From the study “Biggest Isn’t Always Best: The Effect of Breast Size on Perceptions of Women” (From the Journal of Applied Psychology, Volume 32, Issue 11, November 2002),

“Research has demonstrated preferences for medium and large breasts and a tendency to associate positive attributes with larger breasts. Findings have been limited, however, by use of stimuli that do not depict women realistically or in a credible context.

In the current study, a female actor’s breast size was manipulated to create four videotapes (bra cup sizes A, B, C, and D) in which she delivered a speech. Participants viewed one of the four videotapes and rated the actor on social and professional characteristics.

Males perceived the actor more favorably on both professional and social characteristics when she had a medium breast size, whereas females were generally not influenced by breast size.

Findings are related to the popularity of methods to enhance breast size and the need for awareness of the potential impact of breast size on how women are perceived.”

February 12, 2008

In the past few weeks, I’ve gotten loads of nice emails and comments asking me questions about my surgery and my recovery, and I want to answer them because I remember how panicked and worried I was at times before my surgery. And after.
So, one that comes up a lot is worry about size and swelling. Before my surgery I was pretty clear to my surgeon that I did not want to be that big, so when I woke up and groggily looked down I was actually surprised by how kind of high and perky they were. As day 1 and 2 went on they continued to swell. I was then perscribed an anti-inflammatory drug called Difene by my surgeon to reduce pain and swelling. I had 260cc implants put in behind the muscle, remember, so right after surgery I was a D cup. There is more pain and swelling from behind the muscle jobs.
But swelling is completely normal, and actually, one of the nurses told me that it’s more weird if there is NO swelling. (I really need to look up ‘swelling’ in a thesaurus and come up with an alternative…)
If anyone is in their first week of recovery and is sore and swollen, honestly, stop worrying. Talk to your doctor about taking an anti- inflammatory, or maybe take an over the counter one like ibuprofen. But obviously check with a doctor/pharmacist about safety, etc. Use ice-packs to decrease swelling and bruising, or bags of frozen fruit or veg if you like. Sleep upright and keep your arms elevated on pillows or cushions, this will also help reduce swelling.
It won’t last– it can take a month to pass, and even up to 3 months, according to my PS. He told me I wouldn’t see my actual final result until SIX months after my surgery. But I’m over two months now and I’m actually happy with them already. I don’t want them to de-swell more!
Just relax and wait it out, that’s all we can do. We were cut open, had something shoved into our chest, then sewed back up– of course we will be swollen! It’s the body’s natural healing process, and when it’s over, man is it worth it…

February 11, 2008

First, sorry again for the not updating– for numerous boring reasons I haven’t really had a chance. But I’m back, and even better, I should have some more pics up soon.
Anyway, so I went to my two month post-op review with my surgeon and he was delighted with his work, if he does say so himself. I told him about my occasional left arm pain (which is gone now) and he said it is completely normal and happens as my nerves kind of re-ignite, or get working again. (I’m sure there’s an actual medical term for that but I’m too lazy to Google it).
Both boobs have softened up a lot in the past few weeks, so maybe that’s what the twinges were. The PS also said they looked pretty natural, and told me to come back in one year for further review. Yay!

Also, I had sex again on Saturday night (let me just say, at the risk of people thinking I’m a complete slut or something, that before this year I had a loooong dry spell. Main reason? My lack of confidence of course! I’m not saying people should get a boob job to improve their sex lives, but really, it’s amazing how much my confidence has improved, and THAT is something guys notice, not just the boobs. I walk with my shoulders back and my head high, not slightly hunched over, tugging at my top.)
Yeah, so it was with a guy I’ve actually known for years…who I like a lot. We were lying in my bed deliberating on whether having sex would ruin our friendship (as you do) when I just burst out, “Ihadaboobjobinnovember.” He confrimed my new-found realisation that people’s reactions to this news are generally good! NO ONE I have told has reacted badly, or with weirdness. He was interested and gave me the “Fair play for taking the risk, do what you gotta do” speech. Double yay!
Also he kind of loved them– I said, you know they’re still not as soft as real ones…but he didn’t care because he said they felt great. He then took an almost clinical view of them, running his hands over the scars (which he said aren’t bad looking), pressing the inner corners where the implant ‘starts’, etc. Then he started….mmmmmmm. Sorry that bit is not to be shared🙂

In general, people have noticed that my boobs have grown a bit. But it’s not negative and no one is jumping down my throat going “YOU HAD PLASTIC SURGERY!!” Some of my frends just said, hey, your boobs look great, you (finally) got a pair! Hehe. But I’m soooo happy with them. I love that I can look brilliant in nice dresses and tops, I love walking around in a t-shirt and no bra and having lovely round, non-saggy boobs, I love my new body confidence…..so for anyone worried about ANYTHING, just remember 1. why you want to get it done and 2. It will all be worth it….

January 29, 2008

Sorry I haven’t been updating the blog, and actually I have a great post half written in response to some fucking dick who mailed me with “28 reasons not to get a boob job” (the reasons included: you can die, it’s pathetic, men don’t like it, and other such bullshit) but I haven’t managed to finish it because I’ve been sick this last week. Not boob sick, just had that awful vomiting bug. I won’t go into details but trust me, it was violent.

Anyway also in the last week, I’ve noticed a mild and occasional pain in my left breast, it’s kind of a milder version of the original pain, if you know what I mean. I had a mini freak out until I noticed my left arm was also occasionally sore. It’s not BAD pain but it comes and goes. My completely uneducated guess is that it’s my muscle aching. Maybe I’m doing too much?
I’m just a little over two months post-op and I really hope this doesn’t mean I have some problem. Mostly because the anti- implant idiots would love it.
I have my two month check up on Thursday with my surgeon so I’ll talk to him about it. I should also mention that I have a ‘weak’ left arm, ever since I was a baby, due to a bad birth and an incompetent obstetrician. Maybe it’s just strained.

Other than that I’m doing good. They look more natural…they’re softening…and the scars seem to be slightly less scar-like…but maybe that’s just my imagination.

January 18, 2008

Breast Redo Surgery– a scary term for those of us happy with our new boobs and thanking Jesus the surgery part is over, and the looking great part has begun.
But lets be realistic– chances are most of us who get a boob job will need to have them replaced at some point in the future, whether because the implant itself has lost quality in appearance, or because we want to go bigger (or smaller).

It’s a bit early for me to be thinking about it– I plan to wait the recommended five years (after this year’s final check ups) and then go back to a surgeon and just get them done again, regardless of how they look. Actually, the WEEK after my surgery I was like, hey, this wasn’t so bad! I’ll get it done again! I’ll go bigger! My friends were like, um, calm down, you complete plastic surgery addict.

But will we all need a redo? How much will it be? Will the implants start visibly looking bad? It’s all slightly depressing thinking of this but here is what I’ve found out, anyway. Yes, I did me some research. Ahem. *shuffles papers*

Basically, the three most common reasons for breast implant revisions are a desire to change implant size; a need to improve the natural feel and appearance of the breasts; and correcting capsular contracture. I’ll leave capsular contracture out of this, since I don’t have it, you probably don’t have it, and lets all pray we never get it.
So I’ll focus on the need to improve the natural feel and appearance of the breasts, because after up to ten years this all can change, and a redo is recommended. Especially for all us young girls getting it done– I’ll be 30 when I think about going back under the knife.
(OK, that sentence actually scared me a bit. I sound like…I don’t know).

The good news is: not everyone needs a redo. You just wait and see what happens, basically. Go back to a surgeon in five years and get them checked. Also get them checked when pregnant, after pregnancy, and when getting a mammogram.
The other good news is, because the muscle has been stretched and your body has been through it before, it will be much less painful, with a shorter recovery time. Original problems like high boobs and lots of pain won’t be as big a deal.
It doesn’t cost less for a redo–unless you are having it done in the same place because of a problem with your original surgery. I think most places, fearing litigation, will do a redo (?) for free in these cases.

But, yes, many of should expect to need more surgery to replace or remove them in the future.
The exact life span of the implants varies widely from woman to woman…but they are expected to deflate eventually (gulp) and may have a life span of only five to ten years or less.

I wouldn’t let the idea of a redo stop you from surgery– it’s like getting a great bikini wax– it hurts and isn’t pleasant, but it’s worth it, even though you know you’ll just have to go back and do it again…eventually.